Mongolia

Back on the train again for 2 more nights, during which we covered the vast majority of the 1,000+ km to Ulaan Baator. This means of course we spent much of the day stationary not all of it for any apparent purpose. The first 3 hours on arrival at the Russian boarder were spent climbing hills, eating ice cream, playing frisbee & drinking beer. We then got back on the train for the Russian officials to collect passports and return an hour later. Another 3 hours at the Mongolian boarder was the point where Oli's magic key proved invaluable at unlocking the toilet doors (a british gas key for anyone going in future)
In contrast to our previous train the Mongolian carriage attendants were a cheerful bunch.

Trans-Mongolian train, Irkutsk to UB

Arriving in Ulaan Baator, where half of the 2.9mill population of Mongolia live, it was clear this city is a work in progress. There are a number of building sites, in fact it feels like there are more building sites than completed buildings. You get an idea of the state of the roads when you detour through a petrol station forecourt just to avoid potholes.


Sukhbaatar Square, UB



Culture show, UB

Eagle



After a night in UB we headed off for one of the trip highlights, visiting the nomadic people and staying in a traditional ger.



Yak
























turtle rock



It turns out that the nomadic lifestyle is not fully traditional, they tend to stay in the same place for the electricity supply to power their modern fridges and satellite tv. We did however get to try a variety of foods & drinks including fermented yaks milk and curd.

Local delicacies being served

horse riding

The ger camp was also somewhat modernised with a toilet block and restaurant alongside permanent concrete based gers. The setting however was spectacular on the side of a valley with a rocky backdrop. A couple of days sped by climbing hills, dressing up, archery & camp fires.

Ger sweet Ger

Great location

The camp